sunfish PVC dolly

I wanted to build myself a dolly to transport my Sunfish down the beach, or maybe just to get the boat from a parking lot to the water if the boat launch ramp is too crowded. I have spent some time looking around online at a few different options, including options to purchase as well as a variety of home-made dollies.

Seitech dollies seem to be one of the more popular brands to purchase, and start at about $425.

Seitech Sunfish dolly

another similar option is the Trailex universal dolly, starting at about $450, but that is with the 6″ wheels – another $100 to upgrade to 8″ wheels!

Trailex universal dolly

a third option, similar in style to the 2 above, is the voodoo dolly by Windline Sails (he has a GREAT “how-to” section for Sunfish) – the Sunfish version of the dolly is $370.

voodoo dolly

a much smaller option is the Rollaboat Tote dolly, priced at $135. I didn’t like this option, as I was concerned that there was too much of an possibility to over-stress the daggerboard trunk area.

Rollaboat Tote Dolly

this is a home-made version, built using mostly threaded pipe sections, and details of its construction are here.

this is a nice video series for a homemade sunfish dolly – here is part 4 of 5 (there’s 5 total videos, this one gives you a good idea of what the dolly looks like and how it would work). it’s made with mostly lumber products, so avoids threaded pipe or dealing with PVC.

there are several other options for Sunfish dollies over in the “Files” section at the Sunfish Sailor Yahoo Group – if you’re not a member of that group yet, go sign up, and browse through the files to see more options for the dolly, as well as a wealth of other information. probably my favorite option from that group is the Sunfish Beach Dolly by Jim Manta. it is made out of PVC pipe, is plain and simple, and seems to be favored as a good do-it-yourself option. there are detailed instructions and a parts-list at the Sunfish Sailor Yahoo Group.

I decided to build my own version of a PVC dolly, similar in style to Jim’s, but a slightly different setup, and a few tweaks (not necessarily for the better!). I used 1 1/4″ PVC pipe, a slew of PVC fittings, a 3/4″ threaded rod for the axle, and these foam beach wheels. these wheels were a cheaper option than the fat beach wheels Jim Manta used above – we’ll see how well my PVC dolly performs on sand, though.

my sunfish PVC dolly

the top bars are about 36″ total length, and the supports are about 21″ center to center. here’s a general breakdown of parts (all parts can be found at your local hardware store except the wheels):

axle:

(1) 3/4″ x 36″ threaded rod

(4) 3/4″ flat washers

(4) 3/4″ nuts (there are only 2 in the picture – I will pick up another pair to act as locknuts) (SEE UPDATE AT BOTTOM)

PVC:

(2) 1 1/4″ pipe x 5′ long

(2) 1 1/4″ crosses

(4) 1 1/4″ tees

(4) 1 1/4″ caps

(8) 1 1/4″ 45-degree elbows

(2) 1 1/4″ to 3/4″ slip and thread fittings

(2) 3/4″ slip and thread fittings

miscellaneous parts:

(1) 6′ piece of pipe foam insulation (supposed to be for 1″ pipe – it was the largest I could find, on sale for 31 cents… it doesn’t wrap all the way around, but covers enough for me)

(2) foam wheels w/ plastic bushings

a handful of zip-ties

and spray paint (if desired)

I probably got the names wrong on the last 2 PVC fittings – the 1 1/4″ fitting slips into the 1 1/4″ cross, and the other end is female threaded for a 3/4″ fitting. then the 3/4″ male threaded portion is screwed on. the 3/4″ axle fits pretty snugly inside of that fitting. I will probably revisit the hardware store to see if I can find a PVC piece to fit inside the 1 1/4″ pipe, and then the 3/4″ rod inside of that – similar to the style Jim Manta used for his dolly – but I think his axle diameter was smaller, so am not sure if I can get that to work out or not, based on available pipe sizes, anyway.

anyway, the PVC dolly is now built, seems to hold my Sunfish pretty well, and a beach test will hopefully confirm that it works in sand. the dolly should work fine, though, to roll my Sunfish down the boat ramp at my local lake.

UPDATE 07/19/2010….PLEASE NOTE:

I posted an update after almost losing the tires of the dolly when I was driving down the road – using (2) nuts didn’t work adequately as “locknuts”:

I did update the construction just a tad, though. as I was trailering the boat a few weekends ago, the vibration from bouncing along down the road caused the (2) nuts on one end of the axle to spin loose, and fall off as I was driving down the road! in fact, if I hadn’t stopped in time, I probably would have lost one of the brand new foam wheels as well.

to prevent this from happening again, instead of using the (2) nuts on each axle, I reverted back to just (1) nut on the outside, but then drilled a 9/64″ diameter hole in the axle so that I could install a 1/8″ cotter pin to lock everything in place. here is a picture of the installed cotter pin on the end of the axle:

We noticed the comment that someone is afraid of overstress on the daggerboard trunk if they were to use the Rollaboat Tote. We have been using the Rollaboat Tote for years on our Sunfish and have had no stress on the trunk at all.

I did a similar thing with my axle. However, drill the hole for the cotter pin right through the flat of the nut. This way the nut will keep the correct adjustment and not be floating on the edge of the pin. Sort of like how a castle nut would work on a real axle.

Bought my first Sunfish last week end and found your site shortly thereafter. I have really enjoyed it. Made the dolly today and found it difficult to keep it in place under the boat as I moved it around. I also found it challenging to get the boat on it from the trailer. I am hoping to be able to single handedly take the boat the lake and launch it in an area where a trailer launch is not possible.

I was wondering if you have made any adjustments to the dolly to improve it. Thanks for the blog…it’s fun to follow.

Jay, yeah the dolly can be a bit finicky. did you use the foam/insulation? that helps “stick” a bit to the underside of the boat. I usually try to position the dolly about 2/3 of the way back, and steer using the bow handle. to get it back on the trailer, I roll the boat to the back end of the trailer, and then I use the rubber guide/wheel on the trailer, and sort of ride the Sunfish up that wheel until it is far enough on to rest on the bunks. often I end up standing up on the trailer to do it. maybe try it a couple more times?

I haven’t modified the dolly at all – but I might end up modifying my trailer to make it easier to work with the dolly, and to give me some storage space. since I never launch off the trailer anymore, I don’t need to be able to back it down into the water or anything.

Appreciate the comments… I haven’t played with it again yet….darn work getting in the way of play. I don’t have rollers on the trailer but I watched the video you have above and thought that lifting the stern off the trailer and onto the dolly might be a good way to go. I may try to hook up tie-downs to it too to hold it place for the little hills around here. Hopefully there will be a breeze this week end!
Jay

The weak link in most homemade dollies seems to be the wheels. I’ve sourced some seitech-type wheels and need to know if there is enough interest to justify a large order. The wheels very good quality with 1 inch dry roller bearing hubs. Drop me a line at http://www.boatwheelz.com to let me know if you have any interest.

Kelly, strange to think I never mentioned that?! and now I can’t honestly recall, but I’m sure it was less than most of the commercial ones I listed above, and I would think less than $100, even with the foam wheels.

Hello, First of all thanks.
This post was of great inspiration to me. I made mine quite on the same design (and not for a sunfish).
Regarding the question about price, I spent 67 EUR for all materials (wheels being the more expensive part, 26EUR).
I had some difficulties sourcing the cross PVC fittings and I’m still working on making the PVC tubes waterproof (preventing water entering thru the axle)
Thanks again

Sorry, other question: You’ve listed the size of the top bars, but I’m trying to figure out the pipe lengths between connectors on the two Us. I can try to do the math of it, but I’m not entirely sure what you mean by 21″ center to center – is that the pipe with the axle in it, or the U arms?

Emily, no worries. I’ve been meaning to sketch up something better with dimensions on it. the 21″ is the spacing between the (2) u-shaped frames (perpendicular to the u-frame, or along the length of the axle).

I feel like I’m pestering, but what is the length of pipe segments in the U? 3 inches, 2 inches, varies? I think I can count 12 segments by the pic for the Us, and with 27 inches remaining (after arms and center rod), I think that comes to 2.25 inches per segment. Does that sound right? It looks like the segments aren’t equal in length, but it could also be the angles messing with my eyes.

your dolly is interesting. bookmarked for later reading….. I have a junked two wheel wheelbarrow axle ….hope to figure out your carrier .
At the moment my new rudder (christmas present) demands a spring post mounting. Trouble—- the bored hole seems too small. Worried that forcing the spring post could crack the new rudder. Anyone know what the original hole diameter for a spring post?